


as the poets say

by taekooqs



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Angst, M/M, Romance, kingdom au, tsoa au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-17
Updated: 2016-02-17
Packaged: 2018-05-21 07:06:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 20,265
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6042607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/taekooqs/pseuds/taekooqs
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>born from the cruelty of men and the greed of gods, prince sehun chooses baekhyun to accompany him on the quest to fulfil his destiny.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

baekhyun stumbles as he is pushed forwards, tiny legs struggling to keep up with the man twice his size that lead him harshly with a tight grip on his wrist. everything seems frighteningly huge to him as he walks; the high ceilings, the wide doors, the heavy-looking marble statues, the several portraits displayed along the corridor that seemingly followed the eight-years-old with their oil-painted gaze. admiration for the surrounding artwork isn’t granted to him for soon the tall man is opening mighty doors and tugging at his hand once more, leading him along red carpeted floor. sitting at the end, two or three steps above, are big chairs; bigger and prettier than the old ones back at baekhyun’s home whose wood had started to rot. these didn’t look old, much the other way around, and the one right in the centre seemed to be adorned in gold. a throne.

but it is not the big room or the stained glass windows or the big chairs that surprise the child; it’s who sits in them. a man on the throne and a boy, no older than himself, lazily sitting on the chair next to him.

“my lord.”

the guard next to baekhyun kneels but baekhyun hardly even twitches, big brown eyes set on the boy who looked right back at him. he is taken aback; it’s like nothing he’s ever seen before. the boy’s hair, a light shade of golden falling graciously around his face, contouring his round cheeks in such neat ways he almost looks sculpted to perfection. baekhyun had never seen blond hair before, not in person. they say only the children of gods have light hair.

“another boy. his father just left.”

“ah,” the king smiles, but baekhyun’s eyes are still set on the prince who looks back at him with a curious gaze just the same. “come forth, child.”

it takes baekhyun a slight push to the back to realise the king spoke towards him, wide eyes finally moving from the mop of blond hair to the king himself. his hair was black, just like baekhyun’s and the guard’s, and everyone baekhyun had ever seen.

“what is your name?”

baekhyun frowns, pouty lips pursing together. the king didn’t look like a king; he was old and fat and had a big, friendly smile. that was not how baekhyun imagined kings to be at all. instead, his attention drifts back to the young prince with the hair like the sun but eyes like his father’s. the prince smiles at him – just a tiny innocent curl of lips – and baekhyun scrunches up his nose.

“the king speaks to you.” the guard behind baekhyun scolds, frown audible in his voice. “answer, boy.”

baekhyun glances behind his shoulder, displeased – rather than obeying, he sticks his tongue out at the towering man in childish protest. a sudden noise startles him but soon baekhyun realises it’s just the king’s loud laughter, doe eyes meeting royalty once more. behind his tiny hand, the prince seemed amused as well.

“leave him, leave him.” the king waves a hand nonchalantly, far too amused to take offence in a young child’s action. “he must be shy and frightened. aren’t you, boy? it’s alright. you will be happy and treated well here.” he nods, a promise to his own words, but baekhyun scrunches up his nose again. “say, i will leave you with my son. surely sehun can ease your anxiety.”

baekhyun wants to protest again, perhaps complain something outloud this time – but his feet are glued to the ground and he can only watch as the king, alongside the guard, leaves the room after showing one last gentle smile.

noise catches his attention and baekhyun observes as the prince hops off his big chair and climbs, perhaps a tad clumsily so, to sit on the throne instead. his small body made the throne look even bigger than it already was.

“my name is sehun.” the prince smiles brighter now, almost as brightly as his hair, but baekhyun only frowns further. he knows his name – everyone knows the prince’s name. “what is yours?”

baekhyun huffs in annoyance. the prince is watching him curiously, a sense of naivety in his contrasting dark eyes. he doesn’t want to reply; he wants to protest and stay silent until someone brings him back home.

but home is no more and choices have been removed from baekhyun’s tiny hands. barefoot and helpless, drawn in by the uncommon colour of sehun’s hair, it’s with a sigh that he ends up muttering a shy reply, voice raspy from its lack of use.

“baekhyun.”

and he is no more than an ordinary boy.

 

 

 

not many words were exchanged with the prince after the introduction because a maid interrupted them, apologising and telling sehun she had orders to show baekhyun his room. once again he forces his small feet to take quick steps in order to follow the lady, clutching neatly folded clothes she had given him against his chest.

‘his room’ ended up being the slaves’ room instead, and baekhyun was displeased once more to find out he was to share a room with at least ten other boys, all in situations like his own. sold by their own fathers, left to work a lifetime for the king in exchange of a bag of gold coins. he had no other choice, his father told him, for food was scarce and money, scarcer. the king was a generous man, known to take children in from parents who could not afford feeding them anymore.

he was smart, too; a bag of coins was nothing to the luxury royalty bears. it was but an easy way to gain more servants.

“you will sleep here with the other children.” the lady told him. “tomorrow your training begins.”

the other children snickered as he walked by and baekhyun knew this wasn’t going to be as easy as the king made it seem.

 

 

during breakfast, baekhyun would never sit with the other boys his age but instead stay near the maids, feeling a wider reassurance and safety radiating from them. the prince would always sit next to his father, his golden hair easily standing out to the eye. baekhyun has heard stories about the prince; he’s heard his mother is a goddess with a strong dislike towards humans. he never understood why she carried the king’s child when her hatred towards men was so big, but it’s said she sometimes comes to visit her son and her son only. baekhyun wonders if he will ever get to see her.

as if hearing his thoughts, sehun’s head turns, bright dark eyes meeting baekhyun’s. before the latter could even think of covering up his staring, the prince smiles.

baekhyun’s cheeks flush and his gaze doesn’t leave his bread with cheese until breakfast is over.

 

 

 

it didn’t take long for the older servants to realise baekhyun was rather hopeless, to put it lightly, in every possible training field.

some children are trained to become future knights. they’re trained in the fighting area, taught how to manoeuvre swords and spears. jongin and chanyeol seemed exceptionably skilled in this area, impressing their teachers and holding hopes to one day fight for their kingdom. baekhyun couldn’t even lift a shield off the ground.

other children show better skill in housework chores. cleaning, cooking, washing, serving. most seem brilliant to become future loyal servants, and the smallest boy, kyungsoo, seemed to have taken a liking for kitchen matter. as for baekhyun, all of his washed plates came out badly scrubbed and his presence wasn’t too liked in the kitchen for his tendency to break things.

needless to say, in youthful malice, it didn’t take too long for the children to start picking up on baekhyun’s lack of skill.

that resulted in snarky remarks, mean snickering and indiscreet commenting. baekhyun was already used to most of these; he never quite fit in with the other boys, and was often mocked for ‘hiding behind a maid’s skirts’. for the most part, ignoring and moving on was an easy task.

it only became troublesome when one day, matters turned a little physical.

“you don’t have talents, do you? you can’t even swing a sword.”

another push to the chest. baekhyun stumbles backwards, losing his balance and consequently falling on his butt. the children laugh, amused by the situation, and baekhyun only sends them his best glare for he couldn’t deny those words, and perhaps that was what angered him the most.

he was just about to open his mouth to complain, perhaps tell them some cold truths, when another voice cuts him off.

“hey!”

the laughter ceases and the boys freeze, in shock. baek is no less surprised, head turning to watch as the prince makes his way towards them, a look of displease in his otherwise soft features. when he stops, he stands by baekhyun’s side, facing the group of children no younger than himself, small lips pressed together in disapproval. “what are you doing?”

“your grace,” one of the boys starts, speaking slowly as if processing the situation. baekhyun didn’t blame them; after all, sehun would always hang out with them during dinner. never baekhyun. “we were- we were just playing.”

sehun frowns. “i saw you push baekhyun to the ground.”

baekhyun is surprised sehun remembers his name.

“it was an accident, we just meant to play around with him.”

“you could have hurt him.”

“but-“

“apologise to him.”

their eyes widen; baekhyun’s do too. baekhyun, the weakest of all children taken under the king’s wing, the one who holds no special skill, the one unable to make anything right; for the strongest children around to apologise to someone like him, it was a blade to their honour to say the least.

“your grace-“

“apologise.” sehun puts emphasis in the word, arms crossing above his chest in a sense of authority. baekhyun merely remains sitting on the ground, perhaps a bit dumbly so, speechless.

the children glare – not at sehun, they could not dare – but at baekhyun, as if throwing further blame on his shoulders for the prince’s actions. they stay silent for a while, most exchanging looks of uncertainty, before the one standing at the front, self-proclaimed leader, mumbles an angry “sorry”. it doesn’t sound like an apology, not at all; it’s not sincere in the slightest and forcefulness drips from his tone, but it seems enough to please sehun.

“good.” the prince’s features soften almost immediately, as if pleased with himself. “now leave.”

baekhyun watches as the bullies turn on their heels and leave almost as quickly as the fight they picked up with him, and before he can process the entire situation, sehun walks to stand in front of him. baekhyun looks up at him and sehun smiles; his blond hair seems even lighter under the shining sun, and baekhyun could swear it glows. it’s been months since he was left by the castle’s doors, yet he has not yet grown used to the prince’s blond hair.

it’s then that a gentle hand stretches towards him, the prince’s smile stretching further. “are you alright?”

the hand reminds baekhyun he is still sitting on the ground where he had fallen, and instead of grabbing it, he notes the calloused fingertips of the prince’s. it’s with his trademark action of scrunching up his nose that he replies to the prince, almost unwillingly so accepting the gentle action out of courtesy if nothing else. “why did you help me?”

sehun blinks as if confused, head tilting the slightest to the left. “did you not wish for my help?”

“i could have handled it on my own.” baekhyun lies, lower lip jutting out in a protesting pout of his own.

the prince blinks once more, then laughs. it’s not a mocking, malicious laughter like everyone else who laughed at baekhyun; it was a juvenile one, a gentle one out of pure amusement. he smiles again, brighter, and he nods. “i don’t doubt you could.” he says, and the honesty in his voice catches baekhyun off guard. “i will see you at dinner, baekhyun.”

and so baekhyun stands there and watches, a little dumbfounded, as the prince leaves after waving at him as if they were friends.

 

 

notion of time is lost in between months of helpless training and dealing with bullies as they grow stronger while baekhyun only seems to grow weaker. his lack of skill leads to lack of motivation and he has long stopped trying in any of his particular training classes, instead resorting to be contently forgotten in a corner until a maid notices him and pulls him back to work.

he is nine now, and unlike most children his age, he doesn’t have friends. maids and older servants don’t count, and children his age are out of question – apart from the prince himself. baekhyun doesn’t see sehun much, and perhaps that’s why he can’t consider him a friend either; despite quick chats before dinner or a smile from sehun’s part when they walk past each other in the long cold castle corridors, baekhyun loses sight of sehun for most part of the day. he imagines him spending his days training with effort and claw at the young age of eight, doing all sorts of princely tasks and duties. there is a prophecy surrounding sehun, baekhyun has learnt from the maids. they say he is to win the greatest war in history, that his name will remain on people’s lips for millenniums to come, drenched in honour and pride. baekhyun doesn’t doubt them, even if he has never seen the prince fight.

it’s late evening, when baekhyun is making his way towards the dining hall, that he encounters sehun once again. the prince was merely standing, seemingly with no reason, and if baekhyun didn’t know better, he would believe sehun was waiting for him. but princes don’t wait for ordinary servants.

when baekhyun approaches him, sehun hands him a lily from the castle’s gardens. when baekhyun asks why, sehun only smiles.

when sehun leaves, baekhyun is the one left standing for no reason, cheeks glowing pink in contrast to the flower’s white petals.

 

 

 

skipping class soon became something baekhyun often did. going unnoticed and mostly unwanted for most part, it came to a point where he decided that he might as well not go at all for it saves him further humiliation and cruel negligence. instead he spends most of his time hidden away in the servant’s room while no other boy was around, or finding new storage rooms to sit in and go unseen by the maids. he knew he’d get in trouble were he caught, but for as long as no one notices his absence, he might as well keep it up.

and he did, indeed, keep it up quite well – until the day he was caught roaming around the corridors during training time. caught not by a maid, not by a servant, but by the prince himself.

he stood, frozen deer-in-the-headlights situation, wide eyes fixed on the blond boy. he expected the prince to maybe scold him, maybe run back and tell his father, but seconds ticked by and sehun did not move.

“what are you doing here?” he asks, voice soft and innocent in all of its essence. that was a detail baekhyun has picked up about the prince: naivety and innocence were something sehun drowned in daily. how a boy like this is to fulfil a war prophecy, baekhyun can’t possibly understand.

he fidgets, gaze faltering to the cold floor. lying to a prince would be disrespectful, ridiculous to say the least; but admitting the truth, when it is naked and visible right there in between them, feels ridiculous just the same.

when he doesn’t reply, sehun replies for him instead. “you haven’t been going to your training.” it’s not a question, but an affirmation. he knows. “you know you could be punished for that, right?”

“i know.” baekhyun mutters, brows furrowing at the thought of it. he knew what punishment meant; publicly whipped was the most certain option. after all, men believe that if you do not train a boy since his youth, he shall never learn. raising his gaze, he dares to confront the prince. “are you going to tell your father?”

“no.” sehun’s reply comes quick and it surprises baekhyun, having expected the younger to at least give it a thought. instead, sehun only blinks in that annoying innocence of his again, confusion in his gaze. “why would i do that? i don’t want you punished. i’ll help you instead.”

now baekhyun is quite sure he is being mocked. “help me?”

but honesty is clear in the way sehun’s lips stretch into a smile. “yes.” he nods, as if to seal his promise. “you don’t get along with the other boys, do you? that’s alright. you can come with me. i will tell my father you’ve been with me all along.”

one last test; one last reassurance. baekhyun frowns, giving the prince a dirty look in search of muffled intentions. “why are you helping me?”

“should i not?”

“you’re a prince. i’m just a servant.”

“you are. but that still doesn’t explain why i shouldn’t help you.”

“because.. princes don’t help servants.”

“says who?”

baekhyun’s lips part, then close again.

noticing his struggle to think of a proper reply, sehun only smiles further, hand stretching towards baekhyun. “come.”

 

 

 

“i’ve never seen you fight.” baekhyun comments as he sits down in the middle of the room, watching as sehun sits in front of him.

“no one has.” the prince replies, softly shrugging his shoulders. “father says i cannot be watched. it’s because of the prophecy.” he shrugs again, gaze averted to the floor. “i’m supposed to be kind of like a secret weapon, or something.. i don’t understand, but i must obey.”

baekhyun blinks, slowly digesting the new information, before his lips curl into a teasing smile. “maybe you’re just not a good fighter after all.”

sehun frowns. “what?”

“if no one sees you, how can we know you’re going to win a war?” baekhyun grins, playfulness mixed with provocation. “i bet you’re not so great as they all say.”

“but i am.”

“prove it.”

“how can i-“

“fight me.”

“what?” sehun’s brow raises slowly, confusion mixed with a hint of amusement in his features. he, too, knew baekhyun wasn’t a born fighter; the request must have sounded silly to the prince’s ears, but baekhyun was determined.

“fight me.” he insists, unfamiliar confidence adding to the increasing excitement. “fight me, sehun. or are you afraid?”

sehun smiles. “i’m not afraid—“

but his laughter turns into a yelp when baekhyun tackles him to the ground.

having always been one to act on spot rather than think his actions through, baekhyun didn’t manage to wrestle with the prince for too long until their position reversed and suddenly sehun was the one above him, hands pinning baekhyun’s wrists to the ground. he was incredibly strong for an eight-year-old and baekhyun merely felt ridiculous for even attempting to fight back, struggling to even make sehun twitch. “let me go—” he complains, brows furrowing together and a glare sent up at the prince.

games always sound like a good idea to baekhyun, until the part where he loses.

“you wanted to fight.” sehun says ever so casually as if they weren’t in their current situation, smile spreading innocently on his lips. “but you’re not fighting.”

“i was going to,” baekhyun starts, stubbornness clinging onto him as he avoids eye contact. “but i figured you’re not enough of an opponent for me, so i shall not try.”

sehun stares for a moment, blinking slowly before teeth dig into his lower lip, forcefully biting back a snort. “ah. makes sense.”

baekhyun frowns. “are you laughing?”

“no.” sehun lies, smile stretching on his lips as he moves off baekhyun, sitting next to the boy instead. “you’re cute.”

“i—“ baekhyun sits back up almost immediately, expression softening for a second of surprise before a deeper frown takes over. “excuse me?”

“you’re strange.” sehun shrugs, head tilting as the curl of a smile remains. “i like you.”

and while baekhyun thought of a reply, the little prince stood back up and resumed his own training class.

 

 

there’s definitely a look of displeasure in sehun’s face. it’s an emotion baekhyun almost fails to recognise on the prince for the blond always looked so calm, so soft; but now his eyebrows are furrowed and his lips are pursed as he eyes baekhyun, a feeling of unease radiating from him.

“did they do that to you?” he asks, voice surprisingly serious yet retaining that sheer gentleness of his own. baekhyun averts his gaze to the floor, teeth sinking into his lower lip out of shame. presenting himself in front of the prince while sporting a bruised cheek was shameful, even worse admitting its cause, but maybe, just maybe, he’s learnt to trust sehun enough.

instead of direct confessing, baekhyun only nods. “they aren’t happy i spend so much time with you.”

sehun looks thoughtful for a spare second, and if only baekhyun dared to look up at him, perhaps he’d seen the guilt hinting in his features. but he didn’t, therefore he only hears it in sehun’s voice, commanding and leaving no room for discussion. “come sleep with me.”

“—what?”

“gather your things. you will sleep in my room now.” sehun orders, though so softly it seems like a request. “they won’t have any chance to hurt you again.”

it made baekhyun feel that he was pushing his luck too far, yet even so, he couldn’t find it in him anymore to argue with sehun.

 

 

he watches as sehun changes into his oversized night shirt, climbing onto the bed that was perhaps still too high for someone his height. baekhyun is smaller even, leading him to helplessly look around in search of his own sleeping place – a cushion, a blanket, perhaps even the floor –, but sehun eyes him, and as if reading his mind, he smiles. “you are to sleep here with me, silly.”

it’s funny how the prince is always so full of surprises, yet baekhyun never fails to end up caught off guard. “in your- your bed?”

“yes.” sehun replies simply so, blinking. “why not?”

because that’s scandalous is one of the replies sitting on the tip of baekhyun’s tongue, but he refrains from voicing it out. he doesn’t mean to complain, he wouldn’t dare to – a prince’s bed is bound to be better than the pallet he had for a sleeping place in the servant’s room -, but there is no denying the situation is wrong.

as he stands there, inwardly questioning whether or not sehun skipped the class where princes are taught to be disgusted by servants, sehun’s expression fades to worry. “is something the matter?” he purses his small pink lips, and baekhyun could swear there was a hint of disappointment to his gaze. “do you not wish to share a bed with me?”

“i do,” baekhyun replies, perhaps a tad too fast, cheeks thus flushing as pink as sehun’s lips. “i- i would like to.”

“well, come on, then.” the smile is quickly returning to the prince’s lips as he watches baekhyun make his way towards him, shyly climbing onto the high bed. “there is a lot of space in here. we can both fit- we could fit a lot of us in here.”

the prince is excited, baekhyun can tell. he can pick it up from the way sehun speaks faster, lisp slipping him in more noticeable ways, and the way his eyes glint with enthusiasm. the only thing that escapes his mind is the reason behind his excitement, when baekhyun is such a bore indeed.

“sehun,” the name slips unsurely so from baekhyun’s lips, as if still afraid the prince would scold him for the lack of honorifics even after so many days of insistence to call him by the name (“’your grace’ reminds me of the old lords. you don’t fit an old lord, baekhyun.”), but sehun merely turns his head with a smile, humming a soft ‘mmh?’. “your mother is a goddess, correct?”

“she is.” sehun confirms, short nod added to it.

“does this mean you are a demigod?”

“i suppose?” sehun shrugs, smiling. “that is why my hair is light.”

baekhyun nods slowly. “so you are immortal?”

“no.”

“no?”

“no.” sehun turns to lie on his tummy, arms folding under his chin while his gaze remains fixed up on baekhyun, the latter sitting next to him. “my mother is a goddess, but a lower one. i was granted strength and speed, but not eternal life. mother says i have to earn it.”

“and that is where the war prophecy comes in.”

“yes. if i win the war, my name will go on for centuries and i’ll be granted my immortality.” he says, gaze falling onto the pillow. “if i fail, my name will turn to dust along my bones.”

silence falls tense above them. harsh words exchanged between children, but that is their reality – that is sehun’s purpose.  
born from the cruelty of men and victim to the greed of gods.

they don’t speak many more words; it’s late and both are tired. instead they crawl under the blankets of a comfort much bigger than baekhyun would have ever dared to imagine, whispers of goodnight’s exchanged after sehun blows out the candles.

that night, baekhyun dreams of golden hair and eternal glory.

 

 

“you are upset.”

his little game of picking a flower’s petals one by one is interrupted by the most familiar voice. baekhyun doesn’t need to look up to know who speaks to him for by now he would recognise this voice anywhere, but he still does. sehun stands in front of him, a mix of curiosity and concern in his juvenile features. two years have passed; the prince is now ten and baekhyun is eleven, and yet, hardly anything has changed.

“i am not.” baekhyun mumbles, gaze falling back to the daisy held between his thumb and index fingers. although he has undeniably so grown much closer to the blond, he can’t say he’s gotten any better at sharing and dealing with emotions.

thankfully he doesn’t really need to, for sehun has learnt to read him like an open book.

“you are, though.” the prince insists, sitting next to baekhyun. “what is it?”

“nothing.” baekhyun huffs, brows furrowing and lips pursing in slight annoyance. there was a sense of necessity to tell sehun what ran through his mind and baekhyun disliked that; feelings of necessity in general are ones the dark-haired boy disliked for the sense of helplessness they bring him and this was no different.

he just found no need in confessing how talentless he feels at all times to the prince that is the definition of talent himself.

silence settles in between them yet baekhyun can feel the prince’s gaze fixed on him, thus causing him to curl up some more against the tree and stare incessantly at the half-naked daisy. he expects sehun to stand up and leave him, so he waits.

he picks the last petal when soft lips press to his cheek.

baekhyun freezes completely, cheeks immediately flushing red. sehun’s lips linger on his skin for a second or two before pulling away and baekhyun can’t bring himself to meet his eyes.

“it’s alright. you don’t have to tell me.” sehun says, as softly as ever, and baekhyun can hear a smile on his voice. “but i do not wish to see you sad.”

baekhyun’s lips part and close again. he wants to question him, ask why, why would his well-being ever matter to a prince, but he can’t find the words.

instead he stays silent, and it’s not until sehun stands up again and reaches a hand out towards him that baekhyun meets his eye again.

“come see the lilies with me.” sehun smiles, and baekhyun finds it as radiant as the colour of his hair. “i know you like them more than daisies.”

baekhyun could not refuse because, as always, sehun is correct.

 

 

 

“why are your fingers like that?”

sehun stops in his tracks, confusion briefly washing on his features like melting snowflakes before he’s bringing his hands up, palms upwards, gaze studying the calloused fingertips baekhyun speaks of before a gentle smile breaks in his lips once more. “from playing lyre.”

a suspecting brow raises on baekhyun’s forehead, eyeing sehun doubtfully. “you know how to play lyre?”

“indeed.” sehun confirms almost proudly so with a nod of his own, standing up from where they sat and walking towards the big old chest near the wall that no matter how often sehun dug up something from, it always seemed to carry a thin layer of dust on top. sehun’s arm disappears within its depths before he’s pulling out the instrument painted in tones of gold and silver, carrying it back in his arms near the shorter boy. he sits back in front of baekhyun and the latter is fascinated. “do you want to see?”

baekhyun nods, eager.

sehun finds a more comfortable position, lyre in his lap, and it doesn’t take long until his slim fingers find the chords and a light, sweet melody fills the room. it’s enchanting, though baekhyun can’t be quire sure whether he’s more fascinated by the sound or by the way sehun’s hands move so gently, so gracefully in comparison to the fast moves when he fights. he is graceful either way, but baekhyun decides he prefers to watch sehun with an instrument in his hands rather than a deadly weapon.

and it’s so calming, so surprisingly relaxing that baekhyun barely realises he’s singing along.

his own voice easily blends in with the light notes from the strings instrument, creating an ear-pleasing melody almost effortlessly. baekhyun’s eyes close and he smiles as he sings, content, relaxed, thinking of white lilies and naïve princes, blue skies and warm bedsheets.

it’s not until baekhyun’s voice fades that the playing finally stops, coming into an harmonious end. when their eyes meet again, sehun smiles.

“i didn’t know you could sing.” the prince comments, and baekhyun’s cheeks warm.

“i’m sorry,” baekhyun mutters sheepishly, habit tugging the syllables from his lips before he could think them through. he’s surprised by his own apology, but sehun is even more.

“why do you apologise?” the prince laughs, light and gentle, smile spreading on his lips. “one shouldn’t apologise for having a gift. you have one, and you should cherish it.”

“serving boys shouldn’t sing.” baekhyun replies quietly, words from his superiors engraved in the back of his mind. whenever he was caught singing during his training and rightful duties it added to a smack on the head.

“whoever decided that is silly.” sehun says, with such confidence that it has a little laugh escaping baekhyun’s lips. he is quite sure himself that princes should not make such judgements either, but he won’t speak up on it. “sing for me, baekhyun.”

and baekhyun does.

 

 

“baekhyun, baekhyun- look.”

the servant raises his gaze, lifting a questioning brow as sehun gathers four or five small figs from the basket they had brought from the kitchen, excited little smile on his lips that he would always wear when ready for mischievousness.

“are you looking?” sehun questions again although baekhyun’s gaze was obviously focused on him, and only after the latter nods did sehun go on. he threw a fig high in the air – then another, then another – and soon he was skilfully juggling the fruits. he didn’t stutter in his movements nor did any of the figs drop, even when sehun peeled his gaze from them and looked straight at baekhyun instead, smile wider on his lips. “pretty neat, isn’t it?”

it was, baekhyun had to admit. he couldn’t juggle, and for a brief moment, he wondered if this was how the prince spent his free time whenever the two weren’t together. not very royal of him, but that was sehun.

“—catch.” distracted by the jumping fruits, baekhyun’s reaction is a tad too slow to realise in time sehun had thrown one of the figs towards him and rather than catching it, the fruit bumped right against his nose.

“ow-“ he quickly brought both tiny hands to cover his nose, brows furrowing at the ache left where the fig hit him. sehun has stopped his juggling and baekhyun glares up at him, but much to his displeasure, sehun looks highly amused.

“i’m sorry-“ the prince breathes out, but it sounds more like a laugh than an apology. “did it hurt you?”

“yes.” baekhyun accuses, removing his hands from his face. sehun looks even more amused now and baekhyun can pretty much guess he has a red spot around his nose now. “you did that on purpose.”

“i swear i did not.” sehun replies along with a soft chuckle, crawling towards baekhyun and cupping his cheeks in his own small hands. then, he leans in and presses a quick kiss to the tip of baekhyun’s button nose.

needless to say, it’s all it takes for the servant’s face to flush fully red.

“what was that for—” baekhyun complains, flinching backwards so his back bumps against the tree, hands flying to cover his warming face right away. the prince’s kiss had him feeling all kinds of embarrassed and baekhyun only glared harder at him for that.

“to heal you.” sehun laughs, smile wide and bright on his lips and it only adds to baekhyun’s embarrassment. “you blush so easily, it’s honestly cute.”

“i do not!” baekhyun huffs, throwing the fig that had fallen on his lap right back at the prince. it hits sehun on the chest, but it doesn’t affect him at all; if anything sehun only laughs more, and it doesn’t amuse baekhyun the slightest. “stop laughing- i’ll fight you again..!”

it seemed like anything baekhyun said now only made sehun laugh harder. “will you, really?”

“yes, i will!” baekhyun insists, and as much as he hated to admit, sehun’s laughter had this contagious charm to it; the urge to laugh was starting to bubble in his chest too, but baekhyun refused to give in just yet. “don’t try me..!”

but sehun is far too amused to listen at this point, leaning backwards in laughter, and baekhyun takes the chance to jump on the prince again. just like last time, sehun reacts to the surprise attack with a yelp that soon merely turns into louder laughter that goes on until baekhyun doesn’t know anymore if it’s sehun or himself laughing, the two children playfully wrestling on the castle’s gardens, a prince and a servant lost in childish adventures.

it doesn’t take long for sehun to pin him down again just like first time, but this time baekhyun is laughing too and so he can’t remember anymore why they even started this in the first place.

he only knows that sehun looks beautiful with the sun above shining on him.

 

 

 

“son,” the king calls, and baekhyun silently watches sehun stand up and walk over to kneel before his father. he is fifteen years old, and considerably taller than baekhyun. his lisp is gone along with most of his juvenile features, yet his personality remains unaltered.

this was a very important day – so important that sehun’s mother, the sea goddess, was present as well. she stood next to the king, long hair as blonde as sehun’s, but eyes cold as icy rocks. she eyes every human present with disgust and annoyance. baekhyun had met her before; she didn’t like him. she didn’t like anyone that wasn’t sehun.

“today is the day you must bid farewell to the kingdom in order to properly fulfil your training.” the king said. “your new instructor is a well-known and wise man; you will be in good hands. however, your days will be rough and full of sacrifices. for the sake of feeling at peace, you are allowed to bring a partner.” the words are clear, leaving no room for doubt. by the corner of his eye, baekhyun sees the goddess’ lips pressing together in annoyance. “he shall train alongside you, and when war comes, it will be his duty to protect you at all costs. you part in two hours; you have until then to make your choice.”

“there is no need to wait, father.” sehun speaks at last, voice light and confident. “my choice is made.”

“oh?” the king’s brows raise. “let us hear it then.”

“i wish for baekhyun to accompany me.”

there were collective little gasps here and there and one of them might as well have been baekhyun’s, taken aback no less than any other person in the room. murmuring ensues, mainly in between the other present boys.

the king looks surprised just the same, disbelief in his voice as he speaks. “the farmer’s boy?”

sehun does not blink. “if that is how you know him.”

“the boy can’t even swing a sword.”

“i do not need him to.”

“his duty will be to protect you during war.”

“i do not need protection either.” sehun’s replies all come as casual and soft as they could only be, as if the young prince was merely stating facts rather than discussing such important decision. the king looks dumbfounded, much like everyone else in the room, and sehun merely blinks before proceeding. “you ask for a partner and my choice has been made. i wish for baekhyun to accompany me on this journey.”

the murmuring grows louder, sprinkled with sounds of disapproval and protest here and there. baekhyun can feel glaring eyes on him, including sehun’s mother’s, and he has never felt so small. in that moment he almost wishes to reach out for sehun, to tell him to just choose someone else and spare him this embarrassment, but a bigger part of him is far too content for being chosen above everyone else to speak up.

the king seems to be at a loss of words, exchanging a look with the sea goddess before fixing his gaze back on his son who doesn’t seem bothered in the slightest by the comments going on behind his back. a hand raises, silencing the crowd.

“…the choice is yours alone to make, and only you own the rights to it. the one you choose is the one you take. the serving boy shall accompany you.” the king says, and besides the looks of indignity, no one dares to speak a word against him. “prepare for your journey, prince sehun, and bring nothing but pride and joy to your kingdom.”

between the cheers and clapping of the court, baekhyun’s gaze meets sehun’s, and sehun smiles.


	2. Chapter 2

the sun shines high above their heads, its rays piercing right through their skin and bones in unbearable waves of heat. baekhyun huffs for the nth time that day, little hand fanning himself in search of some relief, tips of his pitch black hair sticking to his forehead. he’s tired, legs aching beyond what should be acceptable, and it’s with two hours of endless walking on his shoulders that he finally stops, doubling over, hands over his knees. sehun clearly notices, giving a light tug at the horse’s reins to halt its movements. he looks down at baekhyun, worry pinching his eyebrows together. “are you alright?”

“yes,” baekhyun pants breathlessly, embarrassment tickling him and making him feel weak in sehun’s eyes. he straightens himself back up, hardly daring to ask for a moment or two of rest, and he would keep on walking if only sehun looked more convinced of his words.

“are you sure?” the blond questions one more time. “do you want to ride the horse instead?”

“i can’t.” baekhyun replies almost immediately, a hint of disbelief to his tone. for a prince to walk alongside a servant while the latter is the one benefiting from making the way on a horse’s back is just absurd. “besides, i don’t know how to ride a horse.”

“that’s okay.” sehun says, clearly ignoring baekhyun’s first words. “you can ride with me.”

“what-“ baekhyun looks slightly alarmed, it being his turn to furrow his eyebrows. “i couldn’t possibly- if the king finds out-“

“well my father isn’t here to see, is he?” sehun questions, little smile growing on his lips before he extends his hand towards the smaller boy. “i insist. there’s still a long way to go and i don’t wish you any pain.”

baekhyun purses his lips in dislike, words of disapproval and complaint stinging him right on the tip of the tongue, but the aching in his body speaks louder and the serving boy finds himself taking the prince’s hand in his own one more time.

the trip feels a lot faster when done riding a horse and baekhyun’s legs still ache, body hardly used to work given his habit to skip classes more often than not. there’s not a lot of space left for him and sehun on the horse, mainly because the animal still carries the little belongings they were allowed to bring along (mostly sehun’s clothes and weapons, given as baekhyun hardly had anything at all) thus the two were awfully close, baekhyun’s hands shyly wrapped around the prince’s waist for security. exhaustion was heavy on him to the point he was hardly on his right mind when he found himself leaning his head against sehun’s back, half-lidded eyes watching the passing trees as he rests against the prince. if sehun finds discomfort in their position he surely doesn’t make it visible, yet nothing stops baekhyun’s heart from beating a tad faster against his ribcage.

an hour passes, or perhaps more; baekhyun lost notion of time amidst their silence but the sun isn’t as high anymore, beginning to set behind the tall trees, tinging the sky of pink, orange and a hint of purple. the trotting from the animal wouldn’t let baekhyun fall asleep thus the boy did the trip in a state of half-consciousness, feeling more than ready to drop limp on any unmoving surface he next encountered when his feet met ground once more.

he’s wondering if sleepiness will cause him to soon fall off the horse when he sehun’s voice cuts through their silence, “we’re here.”

baekhyun’s head slowly rises from its comfort against sehun’s back, eyes slowly blinking tiredness away to focus on the approaching sight on top of the hill. there was a huge tree, might and gorgeous, bigger than any baekhyun had ever seen before. next to it, or seemingly attached to it was a house, old-looking yet inviting. plants and vines climbed up the house, adding a touch of colours to the wood brown. it didn’t look like a training house, nor that it belonged to any legendary war warrior of any sorts; in fact, it reminded baekhyun of the stories sehun would read outloud before bed during their younger days.

but the location truly was in the middle of nowhere, with nothing but tall forest surrounding them, and baekhyun figured that if there was an appropriate place to train a prince in secret, it would be there.

once they’re close enough sehun finally pulls at the horse reins to halt its walking, taking a moment or two to observe their new home before he’s climbing down from the animal. baekhyun follows after (definitely not as gracefully as sehun), and he hasn’t even taken a step when sehun is pushing the reins onto his hands. “tie the horse for me, will you?” is what he asks, a gentle smile on his lips. he’s only taken two steps before he’s turning back again, watching the way baekhyun so helplessly looked around, clutching the leather in his hands. with a breathless chuckle, the blond nods towards the massive tree. “a root will do.”

baekhyun’s lips form a soundless ‘oh’ before he ducks his head, shyly making his way towards the trees, tugging at the horse to follow behind. from the corner of his eye he watched sehun walk up to the door and knock, but his concentration soon returned to his task. he messes up a lot of things; he doesn’t want to mess up tying sehun’s horse up.

getting on his knees upon finding a salient root that looked like it could do the job, baekhyun brings the reins around it as tightly as he could, brows furrowed in concentration upon attempting to give them a knot. he fails once, twice, struggles around with it, groans miserably in annoyance by the fourth time, but by the fifth it seems pleasant enough for him as he stands back up, clapping dust off his hands as he does. it may not be the best looking knot baekhyun has seen in his life, but it ought to do. patting the horse’s back, who was now contently enjoying a well-deserved meal from the grass all around, baekhyun turned on his heels and made his way back towards the house.

sehun still stood by the entrance, most certainly waiting for baekhyun to close the door although he didn’t have to, and out of courtesy baekhyun hurried his steps towards his prince. hearing his approaching footsteps sehun turned his head and smiled towards baekhyun, a reassuring smile to which baekhyun replied with a shy one of his own, though one that was quickly replaced by a look of surprise when he looked past sehun and into the house.

a man stood there, far taller than sehun and even more compared to baekhyun himself. his features were strong and well-defined, his eyes sharp and dark, body well-built and fit. though, the reason for baekhyun’s shock was no other than the man’s hair: it was blond.

not as light as sehun’s, but blond.

he probably looked rather dumb, merely standing by the door, lips parted and staring up at who baekhyun assumed was the man that would train sehun. he only came back to his senses when he felt the prince’s hand against his back, gently pulling baekhyun more towards himself, comforting circles rubbed onto thin fabric. “this is yifan.” he introduces, and baekhyun suddenly feels incredibly small under the taller’s heavy gaze. “he will be the one aiding in my training for war.”

baekhyun’s mouth opens but closes once more, swallowing dryly at the lack of words. he doesn’t need them, for yifan speaks next, brow raising high on his forehead as his gaze moves from baekhyun to sehun instead. “is this your serving boy?”

sehun’s hand curls protectively on baekhyun’s shoulder, calm expression unfaltering. “yes.”

yifan hums, giving baekhyun one last head-to-toe glance with something akin to disinterest in his gaze; the disapproval baekhyun expected did not come. “very well.” he merely says then, turning on his heels and waving his hand over his back, motioning them along. “come. i’ll show you to your room.”

sehun gives baekhyun one last reassuring smile before following along.

 

 

their room wasn’t so big, definitely not as spacious as sehun’s back at the palace, but it was warmer than the stone cold walls back home. the wood was old but not rotten, kept in excellent state, preserved by nature itself. there was a bed, wide and comfortable looking, but clearly meant for the prince only for the pallet next to the bed was an easy indicator that the serving boy was supposed to sleep there. baekhyun figured he shouldn't complain; at least it had a pillow and a blanket, things which he had been deprived of during his nights in the servant's room. however, baekhyun had to admit that after growing used to the warmth of sehun's bed, he wasn't particularly looking forwards to sleeping on the pallet.

sehun seemed to agree with his thoughts, his own gaze on baekhyun's prepared sleeping spot before he walks further in the room. baekhyun's gaze drifts to the walls, naked of any sort of decoration, a big window to his right. to his left, near where sehun stood, part of the majestic tree actually entered the room, forming a curve through the wall before disappearing off into the roof.

"amazing," baekhyun heard sehun breathe out, the prince's hand touching the tree trunk while the smaller's nose scrunched up a little in suspicion, in disbelief towards the house's architecture. it had him wondering whether the house had resorted to use of magic, whether it actually stood from a connection with nature. though, he didn't dwell too much on it for soon sehun was calling his attention once more. "baekhyun," his name fell off the prince's lips, an excited smile growing on his lips. "look."

so baekhyun did, and the sight easily had his lips parting in surprise just the same. the entire room was in shades of brown from the wood, but the roof was a deep colour of blue, white lines and strange words drawn all across it. it looked almost like the night sky, as if there wasn't a roof to begin with, and baekhyun didn't know if it was exhaustion or not, but he could swear he saw the white glow before his eyes.

"it's a map." sehun says, climbing onto the bed, eyes shining with excitement. shyly so baekhyun makes his way to sehun's side, crawling onto the mattress just the same, sitting besides his friend. "it's a map of stars." sehun explains, and baekhyun moves closer. he didn't know much; he didn't study like sehun did, nor was he ever taught anything that wasn't for fighting or serving purposes. he couldn't read what was above their heads, but it seemed that sehun could. "the constellations are all here. baekhyun, this is amazing." it was, he had to admit; fascinating, truthfully, to watch all the stars, connect the dots and try to guess which constellation he was observing. and as they seemed to continue on glowing, baekhyun became more and more convinced that this house had not been built by human hands.

"i see the ceiling has caught your attention." yifan's voice startles baekhyun, who quickly moves farther away from sehun, though the latter hardly twitches. baekhyun had been so amazed by the room that he had hardly noticed yifan left them meanwhile, returning now with the bags of sehun's belongings. he walked forwards to put them by the end of the bed, baekhyun watching him carefully.

"how did you do it?" the question falls off his lips before he can stop himself, curiosity speaking higher than manners. this is the first time he speaks to the man, and yifan eyes him calmly. "i mean.. this isn't painted. right?" he asks in a rather sheepish way now, brown eyes fixed on the taller.

there's something akin to curl of lips, a twitch to the corner of yifan's mouth as he glances upwards as well, humming. "indeed, it is not." he confirms, gaze falling on the two teenagers. "let's just say that this house holds its secrets. i figured you would enjoy this room the most, your grace." he says, last words clearly intended towards sehun, nodding at the boy who smiles.

"it is enchanting." sehun replies. "i like it."

"i'm glad." yifan nods once more, straightening himself. his gaze jumps to baekhyun for a second, as if registering the fact that the boy was sitting on the bed just the same, before glancing back towards the prince. "i shall leave you to rest now. it was a long trip; tomorrow we will start your training."

sehun nods and yifan walks towards the door. "rest well, young prince." he says before exiting the room at last, leaving the two alone with nature and stars.

 

 

when baekhyun tries to get under the blankets on the pallet, sehun laughs and tells him to just get in bed with him. that night, baekhyun falls asleep to the soft sound of sehun's voice telling him all about the constellations above their heads, lulled by supernovas and shooting stars and all of their celestial wonders.

 

 

they rose along with the sun next day, even earlier than they used to wake up back at the palace. it came with a surprise that upon waking up, when the night sky was no more, the projection of the stars onto the ceiling had disappeared alongside the darkness; now only wood was above their heads, much like every other wall in that house.

baekhyun was occupied with bringing water to the horse (he noticed, upon checking on the animal, that the knot he had tied around the root had been redone in a much more secure, tighter way) while sehun and yifan gathered the prince's weapons and all that could possibly be needed for a proper lesson from a proper warrior, leaving him a tad stripped of tasks to perform himself.

he spent most of his morning and afternoon resting against a tree, watching as sehun learnt new techniques as well as perfected his own skills and abilities. yifan took his training seriously, and so did sehun; there were no complaints for every correction he received, no faltering on his concentration, no whining when yifan hardly allowed him any rest. and yet sehun continued to do everything with such grace, such beauty to his movements that it was still difficult for baekhyun to believe his prince was, in fact, being taught how to kill.

murder and sehun - those were opposites, antonyms if one might say. to baekhyun's eye, it purely didn't match.

but baekhyun didn't have a saying on sehun's fate.

 

 

there was a time where yifan attempted to teach baekhyun just the same, to try to see if he would be of any help in making baekhyun useful to his prince. needless to say, it didn't last long. baekhyun couldn't tell if the older man was disappointed or angry, frustrated or in disbelief that sehun had brought such servant along when yifan had most likely been told that sehun was to bring someone to fight alongside him in war. he couldn't read the man's eyes; it was as if war had left him in a constant state of indifference.

it was evening when the training ended, the three of them now gathered in the living room. the walls were made out of wood just the same, and some of the tree's roots were salient on the floor. it was adorned in more decoration than the bedrooms; there was a fireplace, a bookshelf, and animal heads and skins decorating the walls. not quite baekhyun's favourite, but there were a lot of those back at the castle, too, hunting achievements put in display for everyone to see.

yifan sat on the couch, sharpening a wooden spear with a knife while baekhyun stood in front of the bookshelf, lightly touching the dusty books with his fingertips. sehun sat next to yifan, clearly drained from the day, tired eyes watching baekhyun.

the servant's fingers stop upon meeting with a book that catches his attention, glancing towards yifan before carefully removing it from its place. it was old, old and heavy, but baekhyun was intrigued. "herbs and plants.." he reads outloud, slowly. "-and their.. healing abi- ah-"

"abilities." yifan finishes for him, his gaze fixed heavily on baekhyun, interest clear in his gaze. he studies the shorter for a moment, and although the indifference expression still reigned in his features, it was undeniable that he was taken aback. "amazing.. a serving boy who can read."

"i taught him." sehun mutters, a loosely curled fist moving to rub at his eyes childishly. "when we were younger.. i read to him, and i taught him as well."

baekhyun's lips pressed together nervously, the book clutched tight against his chest, gaze jumping from the prince to yifan. that was, once more, something that sehun was not supposed to say - or do. the knowledge to read and write is reserved for those of higher rankings; a serving boy who knows anything more than what he is supposed to know is highly unheard of. even worse is when they are taught by a prince himself.

however, yifan didn't say anything on the matter. he didn't scold either of them, nor did he go on about how wrong it was for a prince to waste their time on teaching someone who isn't even worth his presence. instead he kept his gaze on baekhyun who responded by taking a more defensive expression, ready for the explosion to come.

except it didn't.

"i see." yifan replies calmly, gaze lowering onto the book baekhyun held so tightly before meeting the servant's gaze again. "that's a book about medicine. about healing and taking care of others." his head tilts just a little to the left then, as if studying baekhyun intensely. "you haven't proved yourself skilled in any other area. could this be of your interest?"

baekhyun doesn't know what to reply, his own eyes lowering to the book cover once more. it was true that he had no skills, that he couldn't do anything right at all; but it was also true that baekhyun never showed interest in anything that he had been forced to do earlier. this was, in fact, the first time the serving boy took initiative towards anything out of sheer interest.

"you're free to read the book and come to me if there are any words you don't understand. i can teach you a thing or two, as well, so we can judge whether or not we have found your strong point at last." yifan says, losing apparent interest shortly after as he returns his attention to the spear.

baekhyun holds the book tighter against his chest, gaze still lowered, sparkles of hope tickling and bubbling in his chest. he hardly ever said it outloud, but to truly be of aid to his prince was all baekhyun wanted in the world. if this was his chance, if healing sehun of his combat wounds was how baekhyun would fight alongside him in war, then he wanted to do his very best.

when his gaze met sehun's again, the prince was smiling at him.

 

 

baekhyun crawls under the covers shortly after sehun, the stars shining above their heads once more. sehun is exhausted, it's obvious in his expression, and baekhyun expects the prince to go straight to sleep so his body and mind would be ready for another hardworking day. therefore, it came with a surprise when baekhyun felt sehun's hand reach for his own under the bedsheets, fingers intertwining together as if they belonged right between the spaces of baekhyun's own.

"sehun," baekhyun mutters, confused, embarrassed, blinking at the prince. the faint glow of the stars above cast shades of blue and white onto sehun's features, painting the outlines of the prince's face so finely that he looked as if he was meant to glow.

"i'm glad. i'm glad you came with me." sehun replies, voice merely above a whisper, smile remaining on his lips and audible in his tone. his hand squeezes baekhyun's in his and baekhyun's heart jumps. "i wish for you to never leave my side."

baekhyun was at a loss of words, especially after having proven that afternoon that he, so far, is about as useful for sehun's task in war as a writing feather. his lips parted and closed once more in search of what to say, gaze lowering sheepishly.

it was absurd, the pride and affection sehun held for him. baekhyun couldn't find himself to be worth of it, much less find any reason that could justify sehun's care except for the fact that the prince is purely an extremely kind soul.

when his gaze raises once more, he only has time to feel his heart jump against his ribcage before sehun is pressing his lips against his own.

it's soft, it's gentle, much like sehun's whole essence, pure and innocent and warm to the point it had baekhyun's toes curling. it lasts about three seconds before sehun is pulling back, smile gentle and perhaps even a tad shy on his lips, leaving baekhyun with a heart that beat too strong in his chest and too loud in his ears.

"goodnight." the prince whispers, hand keeping its hold on baekhyun's before his eyes close.

"..goodnight." baekhyun's tiny voice comes solid five minutes after, lost in the silence of the night, trapped in his throat as he  
tries to fall asleep with a fluttering stomach, an aching chest and a confused mind.

 

 

 

it is easy to lose notion of time when you fall into a routine, repeating the same actions every day like simple stair steps that you walk on over and over again until the mark of your sole is left imprinted on stone. baekhyun felt that way with training; he didn't do much. he never did much. his morning routine consisted of watching sehun and yifan under the shadow of a tree unless yifan would send him out on a quest for berries and fruits in the woods, something that baekhyun was at least capable of doing on his own. sehun always seemed a tad uneasy, a little unsure about letting baekhyun go out in the woods on his own, but he knew having a little something to do would distract baekhyun from counting minutes.

during the afternoon he would often bring along yifan's books about plants and spells and medicine, slowly reading through the pages, one by one, word by word. he never had much time to read back at the castle - at least peacefully so, without fearing for a maid to catch him off-guard -, thus improvement in his reading skills became noticeable fairly quickly. not only that, but baekhyun proved to be gifted in the healing area, just like yifan had predicted.

it was something he enjoyed; for a boy with empty pockets and no family name, the ability to be of aid to others - to sehun - was something that made his heart flutter at the mere thought of it. his first test came when he stumbled upon an injured rabbit during one of his mornings collecting berries, and he brought it back home to try to heal its broken paw. he did it all on his own; yifan merely watched, making small observations here and there, giving baekhyun tips and advice. the recovery process of the broken bone had been far quicker that it should even be possible, but by then baekhyun had already learnt to not be surprised over how things worked in that strange land of yifan's.

the best part of it, however, had been how fascinated sehun was, and how the prince spent an entire night just talking over and over again how amazing it was that baekhyun could fix what was broken.

days and weeks went by and baekhyun was amazed by how sehun managed to become even faster, even stronger when baekhyun thought the prince couldn't go any higher above. it was fascinating to observe, to watch his naïve sehun slowly become a man prepared for war.

heartbreakingly fascinating.

the sun is now setting as they sit against the large tree after yifan left for business in the nearby village, a comfortable silence wrapped around them like a cosy blanket. there wasn't much to be said; when you spend the entire day together there is hardly anything you can comment on for an element of surprise, but baekhyun didn't mind.

"how are you feeling?" he questions after a long while, watching as the sun disappears into an ocean of orange and pink.

"peaceful," sehun replies, and gently, even naturally so, his hand finds baekhyun's one lying on the grass and their fingers slowly intertwine together. baekhyun's cheeks warm and he finds sehun's shoulder to rest on. "how about you?"

"i'm tired." baekhyun says truthfully, shyly nuzzling his cheek against the taller's shoulder, carefully moving his body closer to sehun's for warmth. "but i'm happy."

sehun smiles, head leaning to rest atop of baekhyun's. "i'm glad." he whispers in return, hand squeezing baekhyun's in his own a little tighter. "i'm happy too.. i'm happy you're still by my side."

"did you think i would run away on the second day?" baekhyun asks playfully, a hint of teasing to his voice that earns a chuckle from the younger.

"not at all." he hums. "i just wish we could stay like this forever."

forever.

 

 

"sehun- i'm not going to bathe with you-"

"but why not?" the prince laughs, lightly and freely, swimming backwards while maintaining his gaze on the standing boy. "you kiss me goodnight, yet you won't get in the river with me."

"you cannot possibly compare." baekhyun breathes out in disbelief, though a light shade of pink brushes over his ears at the mention of their goodnight kisses. it stuck to them, ever since that one time; a peck on the lips and a wish of sweet dreams became their before-bed routine. "that's nothing compared to being naked in the presence of a prince- together with a prince-"

"i thought we had dropped all formalities." sehun comments, little smile on his lips indicating patience, but also a tiny bit of frustration. "we're deep in the woods, no one will find us. yifan gave me the afternoon off, he won't come look for me."

baekhyun sighs lightly, frustrated, conflicted, looking elsewhere as he bit the inside of his cheek. joining sehun sounded like fun, but the part of him that constantly looks out for sehun when the taller is doing dubious things yelled at him, protesting in his head.

"please," sehun adds, arms lightly splashing the water as an encouragement, an invitation. "join me, baekhyun."

and if only there was a mere way of resisting sehun's puppy-like gaze baekhyun swears he would use it, but there is not, and thus the servant finds himself sighing in an exaggerated manner, finally complying to the prince's whining. it's with shyness that he strips off his clothing, even more when he enters the river, but the sun is hot and the water is fresh and sehun is there, and suddenly everything feels a lot better.

"wasn't so hard after all, was it?" sehun smiles as he swims towards baekhyun, stopping when the shorter swims backwards sheepishly, light chuckle escaping past light pink lips. "don't be ashamed. there are no courts nor statuses in this river." sehun smiles playfully. "only two boys. just you and me."

"just you and me." baekhyun repeats, timid smile stretching on his lips, an indicator of his growing comfort with the situation.

the apparent ease with the situation was the final reassurance sehun needed to unleash his playful side, losing no time in using his hand to splash water at the dark-haired boy. it had baekhyun yelping in surprise, body quickly turning away to shield his face from the attack, a laugh of disbelief falling off his lips.

it didn't take long for baekhyun to attack right back, his worries and concerns of positions and ranks disappearing along with the flowing water, leaving two mere boys, just him and sehun, childishly splashing water at each other like there was no tomorrow. sehun proved himself to be merciless, attacking the smaller over and over again even as baekhyun plead for him to stop in between the incessant laughter, the immature situation far too amusing for both.

but it didn't take long either for it to become exhausting, for the laughter to grow more and more breathless, for the space between them to start closing up. baekhyun can't quite recall when exactly sehun approached him so close yet soon there he was, towering over baekhyun as per usual, blond hair sticking to his forehead, wet skin shining under the sun. it had baekhyun feeling frozen, petrified really, thoughts racing through his mind, heart picking up an accelerated rhythm.

"sehun.." he mutters, questions, but is not given much more time for words or thought as sehun closes the distance between them, full lips meeting thinner ones. it's different from their goodnight kisses and baekhyun's heart almost shoots right through his chest, breath caught in his throat, eyes falling shut.

he is used to gentle, simple pecks from sehun but now the prince is moving his lips against baekhyun's and the latter is left in a mix of helplessness and excitement, his own lips slowly starting to return the movements. it's clumsy, it's not perfect and neither is quite sure which way to turn their head at first but they make it work, his hands finding sehun's arms to hold onto while the taller's thumbs rub reassuring circles against his cheekbones, easing baekhyun and relaxing him of any thought.

sehun's tongue pushes past his lips while baekhyun's arms wrap around the prince's neck and the two kiss until their mouths go numb.

 

 

 

"mother," sehun greets, voice mixed with surprise, brows raised high in his forehead at the unannounced visit. baekhyun and yifan stayed behind inside the house, a necessity for the sea goddess refused to see anyone other than her son, nor would she allow anyone to spy on their conversation.

"sehun," she replies, delicate hands moving onto her son's shoulders, blonde hair waving gracefully behind her back almost as if it were floating in water. "you've grown." she comments, warmth to her voice, a smile on her lips that she only ever allowed the prince to see. indeed, sehun had grown, both figuratively and literally so as sehun definitely inherited tall genes from her. he wasn't as tall yet though, nor would he ever be, for sea goddesses are all quite vertically blessed not only from nature but power as well.

"yes," sehun agrees, faint smile on his lips, though it vanishes with curiosity and confusion shortly after again. "why are you here?"

"a mother can check on her son, can she not?" the goddess replies, hands sliding off the boy's shoulders though the gentle, calm aura to her remains just the same. "it's been a few months. i wished to see how your training has progressed."

"rest reassured, all has been well." sehun confirms, smile back on his face. "yifan is a great tutor. i'm learning a lot from him."

"i'm glad." she hums, offering a soft curl of lips before she glances behind sehun and towards the wooden house. "and are you still with that servant of yours?" she questions, though she obviously knows the reply, and it's clear in her features that it displeases her. the years may pass, but her affections for humans remain non-existent, no matter how special they might be for her own son.

"yes." sehun replies simply. "baekhyun will remain with me, and he will accompany me to war."

"i don't know why you chose that boy." the goddess mumbles, bitterness clear to her tone, glaring holes into the house as if she could see right through the walls just where baekhyun was sitting. sehun knew she could. "he is of no use to you."

"it doesn't matter." the prince says, voice remaining calm though he was displeased with the way his mother spoke of baekhyun. it wasn't something he didn't expect, though.

"it does matter. he is a weakness." the goddess remarks, serious gaze now fixed on her son's, wishing to get the message through to sehun. "and a great warrior should not have any weaknesses."

when sehun doesn't reply, wariness grows in her chest.

"listen to me, son. he will ruin you." she warns, and when sehun meets her gaze again, there's urgency in her eyes. "that boy will be your fall."

and with nothing to sustain such fall, sehun might just be unable to stand up again.

 

 

"it's honestly alright," baekhyun tries for the nth time, biting back a hiss when sehun's hands fail him in gentleness and are just a little too rough, adding the tiniest pressure to his wound enough to make it sting. sehun wasn't too good at anything that had to do with patching someone up; he didn't know what to do and his actions were messy and clumsy. baekhyun guided him through, and he inwardly felt proud that he was, for the first time, one step ahead of the prince in at least one single field.

he lifts his arm a little once sehun is finished, observing the white bandages tightly wrapped around the wound before looking back at sehun. the prince was upset, clearly.

"it's okay," he reassures once more, other hand moving to cup the taller's cheek in the gentlest of holds. "it was my fault. i insisted on it."

sehun meets his eyes in what was probably the first time ever since they sat down on yifan's couch, guilt and frustration swimming in his dark irises before his gaze meets the rug beneath his feet once more.

baekhyun just meant to try again: one more test, one last try. he is eighteen now, sehun seventeen; a duel with sehun was what he asked for, with yifan's supervision to aid him in combat. they knew it wouldn't go well for all three of them were perfectly aware that swordfighting was not baekhyun's strong point yet the servant insisted on it, wishing for one last proof to convince him at last.

sehun went easy on him, far too easy in ways that would get him killed were it a fight against any poorly trained knight - yet he was still the one who won in the end after accidentally wounding baekhyun on his left arm. the cut itself wasn't too deep, something that would easily heal in due time, but it had been more than enough for sehun to suffocate in guilt of his own.

guilt, and maybe something more.

"i don't want you to fight." sehun says, voice hardly a whisper, so small for someone with such big aura, filled with fright and realisation.

baekhyun is undoubtedly taken aback, gaze raising from his arm to meet the prince's, though the latter did not return the look. "what?"

"i don't want you to fight in the war with me." sehun repeats, glancing up at baekhyun before he's standing up from where he had been previously crouching in front of the smaller, tense limbs drenched in unease.

"but that's what i'm here for." baekhyun replies, confusion hinted in his own voice, brows furrowing slightly in concern. "that's why you chose me."

"i chose you because i wanted to be with you." sehun says, slender fingers meeting together to pinch at the bridge of his nose lightly so. "i didn't think.. i never thought of the actual war."

baekhyun can only watch the prince dwell on his own thoughts before the blond is crouching down in front of him once again, hands holding the shorter's face, thumbs rubbing over his cheekbones. "i don't want you to follow me to war.. you will stay behind, where you are safe."

"if i stay behind i will be deemed a coward." baekhyun retorts, though his hands find sehun's wrists to hold, mimicking sehun's thumbs and rubbing comforting circles against the skin. "i will go with you, as it was originally planned."

sehun though shakes his head lightly, soft frustrated sigh escaping past rosy lips. he holds baekhyun's face and leans forwards, pressing a kiss to the shorter's forehead. "i can't bear to lose you in war," he whispers against pitch black hair, eyes closing momentarily. "i can't bear to lose you at all."

baekhyun's heart skips a beat and picks up an unhealthy rhythm, drumming strongly against his chest as a resulf of sehun's words. he clutches sehun's wrists a tad tighter in his hands, and all words he could possibly say get caught and stuck in his throat.

they stay quiet for a moment, each preoccupied with their own thoughts before an idea swirls its way into baekhyun's mind.

"i will stay in the tents and aid the injured," baekhyun mutters, leaning backwards so he would gather sehun's attention, finding the prince's eyes to look into. "i won't follow you to the battlefield but i will be there every time you return. healing is my only gift.. it's the only way i'll be of any help to you and the rest of the army."

sehun watches him intently, trying to read baekhyun's expression, drinking in his idea and deciding if the taste of it is to his liking or not. and then he's pulling baekhyun in, pressing their lips together in a sealing kiss.

"i'll keep you safe," he whispers, promises, pecking baekhyun's lips again and again. "i'll protect you at any cost."

even if it results in him falling right onto his mother's warnings.

 

 

it's the first time in the two years they stayed at top of the hill that yifan allows them to go on a short trip to the nearby village, all on their own. baekhyun has accompanied their tutor a few times but sehun has never stepped out of the surrounding woods, having to be kept hidden away almost like a secret weapon of some sorts.

the excitement is clear in the prince's features as the two enter the village, hands clutching the hood over his head, securing his blond hair from being seen by any of the commoners. baekhyun leads the way, list of needed groceries in his hand, and his heart bleeds endearment every time he looks behind and sees curiosity shining in sehun's eyes, lips curved upwards. the years may pass, but the naivety and innocence to sehun's being does not falter one bit.

"fascinating," sehun breathes out behind him for the nth time and baekhyun has to hold back laughter, amusement bubbling in his chest. the prince hardly ever had been allowed outside the palace walls back at his own kingdom, thus the excitement and admiration is easily understandable. "truly fascinating."

"are you aware of how silly you sound?" baekhyun asks, playfully so, smile wide on his lips as he reaches towards sehun and holds his hand, locking their fingers together. the action was enough to make his heart flutter, but baekhyun pushed back any embarrassment for the sake of making sure he wouldn't lose his prince in the crowd. "here," his free hand pushes the little basket against sehun's chest, waving the little grocery list afterwards. "we need to get these for yifan before dusk."

sehun nods but baekhyun knows his words did nothing to ease the excitement from the prince, who is immediately distracted by the sound of a woman trying to sell fruits nearby, and baekhyun has to be the one pulling sehun along the village for them to get anything done in the first place.

the basket sehun carries is only halfway full with the needed items when the prince is gasping for the millionth time that day, giving a light tug at baekhyun's hand to halt their walking. "baekhyun-"

"sehun, we truly must hurry-" baekhyun starts, though cuts himself off as he turns around and witnesses what caught sehun's attention, lips parting slightly in an inaudible 'oh'.

lilies, of the purest white, in display among other colourful petals on a flower stand. it had been a while since baekhyun had seen lilies; in fact, the last time had been at sehun's palace, for these flowers did not grow on the surroundings of their new home. it was a nice, almost nostalgic sight, and baekhyun found himself admiring the flower's beauty as if it were the first time he was seeing them all over again.

he's in such awe that he hardly notices sehun already pulling him towards the stand, only coming to his senses when sehun is requesting to buy the prettiest lilly the woman had in display. sehun thanks her and turns to pull baekhyun a little further away from the flower stand, smile warm on his lips as he moves and tucks the lily nicely behind baekhyun's ear. "here we go," he laughs lightly for the lily is a rather big flower yet it adorns baekhyun's face so prettily, looking like it was meant to sit there all along. he also notices how baekhyun's rosy cheeks contrast to the pure white, but he refrains from teasing the shorter just this one time. "beautiful."

baekhyun is indeed aware of how his cheeks are warming up but he flashes a thankful, shy smile up at sehun nevertheless, his hand still holding the taller's giving him a tiny reassuring squeeze. he could easily spend an eternity just like this, smiling and looking up at the prince's gorgeous features until the end of time, but it seemed like sehun had yet again different plans.

"come," he says and he's pulling baekhyun towards one of the many alleys scattered throughout the village, hood falling from his head at the quick movements. it has baekhyun quickly reaching over to cover the golden hair once more, calling a wary 'sehun' for caution yet the prince is hardly listening at all, only satisfied once they're by the darker part of the dead end, shadowed by the buildings.

"what are you-" baekhyun starts yet cut off is he again by no other than sehun pushing him against the wall, lips meeting his own in a sudden kiss. the shorter emits a little noise of surprise yet sehun only takes the chance to push his tongue through parted lips, head tilted to deepen the kiss.

it's rough and clumsy and more than enough to easily have baekhyun melting under sehun's warmth, his free hand wrapping around the taller's neck, pulling him closer to himself.

neither of them minds it when they're scolded by yifan later on for taking so long and coming back with only half of the requested items and a really crumbled up grocery list.

 

 

it's late night as baekhyun changes into his night shirt, the constellations above shining its familiar blue-ish glow onto his skin. sehun is in bed already, lying, waiting, his gaze following baekhyun's each movement with adoration and something else in his gaze that baekhyun couldn't quite identify. it has him feeling shy, truth be told, for sehun is never too interested in watching baekhyun undress as he is today and it makes the serving boy feel awfully exposed, a warm shade of red spreading across his cheeks.

"what is it you're so interested in?" he asks, lightly so, a little playful albeit shy smile on his lips as he turns towards sehun after buttoning his shirt and proceeding to crawl onto bed.

"nothing," sehun replies just as playfully, though the way he tilts his head gives away his remaining interest, gaze faltering from baekhyun's eyes to his chest and up to his face again. "i don't think i have ever noticed how gorgeous you are."

if sehun's gaze hadn't left baekhyun feeling embarrassed earlier then his comment now surely did the trick, the tips of the shorter's ears turning deep red as a small, nervous laugh falls from his lips. "and what is this about?" he keeps the playful attitude, though he's shaking his head at sehun afterwards. "all that training has gotten to your head, my prince."

"my prince?" sehun hums lazily in amusement, leaning forwards to press his lips to baekhyun's jaw, an arm subtly wrapping around the smaller's waist. "since when do you address me as such?"

"since ever, i should have." baekhyun replies, though sehun's lips are trailing towards his ear and he is beginning to easily melt under sehun's touch, concentration faltering. "but someone insisted so vigorously to address him by the name."

sehun merely hums once more in reply, his arm around baekhyun's waist pulling the shorter more towards himself. he manoeuvres their position until baekhyun is sitting in between sehun's legs, the latter's arms still securing him against his chest, and baekhyun can't help but grow alert of the situation. none of this was usual to their nights and the change confused baekhyun almost as much as it embarrassed him.

“sehun..” he starts, cautious, a bit wary, teeth lightly sinking on his lower lip as sehun noses at his neck, palms pressed flat against both baekhyun’s lower stomach and right above his heart. if sehun can feel how fast his heart is racing he doesn’t comment on it, instead busying himself with inhaling the familiar scent that smells like home to him, feather-like touch from his lips blessing his neck.

sehun's hand on his lower stomach descends, rests flat on his thigh near the knee where his skin was bare and warm to the touch, earning an unfamiliar twist to baekhyun's stomach, making it a little bit harder to breathe. sehun's hands were incredibly smooth and soft for someone who uses and reuses deadly weapons on a daily basis, doing a wonderful job in making baekhyun's skin tingle with each fingertip rub.

"does this make you uncomfortable?" sehun asks, breath hot and tickling against his neck, and baekhyun could swear his voice sounded lower than it usually does. he also took notice how sehun's hands didn't move any further, didn't dare any longer, waiting for a permission of some sorts that baekhyun wasn't even sure what it was for in the first place.

or perhaps he did, but for someone who is used to seeing only uttermost innocence in this boy blessed with hair kissed by the sun, it is a tad difficult to grasp a concept involving sehun and not so pure actions.

baekhyun can't find his voice to reply, merely shaking his head a little, letting his body language speak for itself.

"does it feel good if i do this..?" sehun asks, voice hardly a whisper while his hand on baekhyun's thigh travels upwards once more, slower this time, heavier too, sliding underneath the white fabric of baekhyun's shirt. his fingertips press on baekhyun's inner thighs and it has the serving boy gasping. "or this..?" the prince's free hand moves underneath the night shirt as well, mapping out baekhyun's chest, taking in each curve and counting every rib. "is it still good, even if i do this?" his lips are right against baekhyun's earlobe, voice hardly audible, hand on his thigh daring to caress the rest of its way up.

sehun's name ends up being all that falls from baekhyun's lips in broken bits and pieces until dawn greets them and the stars are no more.


	3. Chapter 3

“how many so far?”

"eleven," baekhyun replies, head tilted in concentration after skilfully placing the flower in such way it wouldn't fall off easily. "there would be more if you learnt to lie still."

sehun laughs a juvenile laugh and his eyes remain closed, smile wide on his lips, enjoying the sun warming his skin while baekhyun entertained himself adorning sehun's hair with the wild flowers around. it still saddened him that no lilies grew around there but he supposed tiny daisies and tulips would do the job, decorating sehun's already beautiful hair with even more grace.

"it's been a while since you last sang for me." sehun comments after a short silence, eyes lazily opening to meet the dark-haired boy's. a lazy smile spreads on his lips, and maybe, just maybe, a hint of nostalgia comes attached to it. "i miss your voice."

he was right; it truly had been a while. he used to sing more often before, when they were younger and baekhyun was barely sixteen, sitting together along with yifan around the salient roots of the living room as baekhyun sang for them. the habit has since died out for both their trainings have increased in difficulty, thus leaving baekhyun's mind far too occupied to remember such little joyful actions.

though, the fact that sehun might just think back to their little singing sessions every once in a while does warm his heart.

"should i sing for you?" baekhyun asks, smile widening on his own lips, leaning forwards to peck the prince's lips. he allows the kiss to linger for a second too long before he's pulling away and the adoration left in sehun's gaze is enough to make confidence and warmth pool in his chest. "should i do it now?"

"please," sehun replies, softly so, words almost sighed from his mouth, the most adorable little smile plastered lazily on his face as his gaze remained on baekhyun and baekhyun only.

baekhyun's smile widens, momentarily torn between granting sehun's wish and just leaning in to kiss the prince until their lips were swollen, but he fights against the shameless urge and his decision falls on his first choice.

his lips part.

"—sehun!"

and they're shut closed once more.

he quickly turns his head, sehun raising his from where it had been lying on his lap (the abrupt action causing all flowers to fall unceremoniously from his hair), the two watching as yifan approached them with large steps. the tutor takes a second to catch his breath, a moment to eye the two of them with something indecipherable trapped in his eyes before his gaze falls mainly on sehun. "come quick, both of you."

 

 

“war is coming.”

time stops, the words hanging heavily mid-air above their heads, weighing down on their shoulders like invisible boulders. sehun stiffens next to him, and baekhyun forgets how to breathe.

war.

"why?" sehun asks in a breathy whisper next to him, composed as always though his walls are shaking, threatening to crack under the sudden pressure that fell onto him. baekhyun doesn't understand how he can possibly give off such a calm image of himself, but he figures that was probably because he, unlike sehun, was not trained like a dog his entire life for the arrival of this day.

didn't make it any less cruel, though.

"do wars ever truly need a reason?" yifan smiles, and it's a bitter smile, one that baekhyun has never seen on him although he can hardly bother wondering for the cause behind it when his head is spinning, flooded with thoughts. "riches or power, or both. in the end, it doesn't matter. what matters is that you don't lose."

sehun nods. baekhyun stares blankly past yifan, lips pressed together in a tight line.

"i haven't been given much information, either. i'm sure you will be told more about it when you make it to the battlefield." yifan explains then, a sigh of frustration escaping past his lips. he glances towards baekhyun, then settles his gaze back on sehun. "anyway.. you will be leaving tomorrow."

"tomorrow?" this time it's baekhyun who breaks his own silence, question coming off as a terrified whisper, voice cracking at the ends. he eyes yifan as if he's a madman, though sehun remains perfectly collected next to him.

"tomorrow." yifan reaffirms, gaze heavy on baekhyun now. "furious kings do not wait. you are lucky he even gave sehun time to return and defend his kingdom, rather than fully attacking just like that."

baekhyun is shut by that, though his hands curl into fists, bitterness and fear adding new shades of colour to his brown eyes.

"sehun," yifan turns his attention back to sehun, and more than a warning, there is a request behind his words, hidden in his expression. "bring honour to your kingdom," he purses his lips momentarily, before nodding briefly. "and return home safely."

sehun nods and his hand finds baekhyun's to hold, to reassure. "i will."

 

 

sehun is affected by the news, and that comes rather obviously for someone who knows him well enough, such as the way he is so awfully quiet, so terribly still. his body language may be calm, but his mind screams in its place.

baekhyun wishes sehun would let him scream along.

it's night time and neither bothers changing into their night shirts purely for the reason they both know sleep will not be greeting either of them, thoughts and worries too loud in their heads. they sit in bed, side to side, hand in hand, baekhyun's head resting on sehun's shoulder and the faint glow of the stars involving them in the last embrace of warmth they might be lucky to receive for a while now. it also has baekhyun realising this will most likely be the last time he will see this bewitched room with its enchanted glowing constellations, and although he knows them like the back of his hand by now, the aching in his heart tells him he misses them already.

"sehun," baekhyun starts, tries, a weak attempt at breaking this burdensome silence weighting down on them, but the moment his voice is heard under the form of a cracking whimper, sehun's hand squeezes his own in a tight hold.

"i'll protect you," sehun whispers, and the way his voice sounds so teary, so sad breaks his heart and shreds it to pieces. he brings their hands to his lips, pressing a seal to his promise under the form of a kiss on the back of baekhyun's hand. "i'll keep you safe, no matter what."

sehun's words squeezed baekhyun's heart, tugging at his veins and causing his vision to blur. they both were worrying over the same thing.

there was little chance someone like baekhyun would possibly survive this war.

 

 

it took a whole day by horse to reach the place destined to soon be surely one of the bloodiest, deadliest battlefields marked in history. the open field was wide, with grass as far as the eye could go, and baekhyun only found himself wishing the grass would turn dry and yellow with time rather than painted crimson red against its own will soon enough.

the army was already there as they arrived, all tents set up safely behind the hill for maximum shelter. people were busy, running around from tent to tent, tending to the horses and polishing their spears and swords. there were many nurses as well, checking that they had enough herbs and medicine to treat the future injured for they couldn't possibly afford running out of necessary treatments when the war was at its peak.

baekhyun walked behind sehun as they made it through the crowd to their destined tent, watching as everyone bowed to sehun as he walked past, feeling small under the confused, judging looks thrown his own way. he could hardly blame them, though; certainly they had expected baekhyun to return looking much taller, much stronger and confident rather than maintaining the same fragile look to him that he carried four years ago.

it made him wonder, for the nth time, if being chosen as sehun's partner had truly been a wise choice from the prince.

"your grace," a deep yet youthful voice calls above the crowd and sehun turns on his heels, causing baekhyun to almost bump into him when halting his own walking. he turns around just the same, and it takes him more than a second to recognise the smiling figure.

"chanyeol," a smile spreads on sehun's lips just the same and he walks ahead to greet his old friend, leaving baekhyun behind, merely watching. he remembers chanyeol; he was a boy given away to the king in exchange of a bag of gold just like baekhyun himself, though far more skilled than the latter. he proved to be gifted in the fighting area, and he was one of the young knights eligible as a partner when sehun chose baekhyun instead to accompany him on this quest.

still, the lanky fifteen year-old baekhyun remembers from back then looks nothing like the chanyeol he is looking at right now, who has grown even slightly taller than the prince himself, features strong and defined, body built for war.

"it's great to see you again, young prince." chanyeol dips his head in a respectful bow, smile growing even wider in his lips. how he can smile in a setting of war, baekhyun can't quite understand, but he figures it must be a coping mechanism of some sort; that, plus he recalls he and sehun were good friends back then. "jongin is here as well. he will be thrilled to know you arrived."

"i'm glad to know you're both well." sehun nods in return, warm smile remaining on his lips just the same. "we arrived just now,” he says, looking over his shoulder to motion baekhyun closer. "baekhyun will be helping the nurses back here."

"my, if it isn't our baekhyunnie," chanyeol laughs, dumb grin wide as baekhyun steps closer. "you're still as tiny as i remember you. did you sleep through these years of training?" he teases, causing baekhyun to glare at him while sehun wraps an arm around the shorter's shoulders.

"he's quite skilled at healing," sehun says instead, most likely to save the situation before baekhyun would start a fight before the actual war even began. his hands rubs at baekhyun's shoulder and the smaller scrunches his nose lightly in return.

"so you aren't all that dumb, huh?" chanyeol teases, playfully and stripped of the malice his words held when they were younger, yet it doesn't fail to annoy the serving boy. "kyungsoo will be helping out the nurses as well. you might meet him there."

baekhyun's spirits lift a little at the words. he was never too close to kyungsoo, but at least the boy was quiet, something all the young knights failed to be as well.

"reunite the army now." sehun orders then, though it sounds more like a request, pressing baekhyun closer to his side. "i will meet you in ten minutes so we go through the plans. make sure everyone is there, knights and healers alike."

chanyeol nods, smile faltering but remaining. "will do." he nods his head in another respectful bow, before turning on his heels and walking on to fulfil his task.

sehun looks down at baekhyun and baekhyun tilts his head to meet his gaze. the small smile remains, but baekhyun can easily see past it now; worry swims in sehun's gaze, and baekhyun wishes he could reach out and pull him out of that pool before he'd drown.

soft lips press to baekhyun's forehead and the shorter fails in finding his voice. "go," the prince whispers against his head, before letting go of him.

baekhyun steals one more glance his way, maybe waiting, perhaps expecting something else, before turning his back just the same and following after chanyeol.

 

 

the tables turn; it is baekhyun now who watches sehun undress, droopy eyes observing his prince from the cold mattress they had for a bed in that tent. sehun's personal tent was the widest, and the only one not shared with anyone else; baekhyun was not supposed to sleep there, but at this point, hardly anyone bothered about it anymore. not even baekhyun himself did.

but there's sadness heavy in the air and it suffocates him, cools him more than the cold night air. tomorrow was the big day, the dreadful big day everyone had been awaiting ever since the birth of their so beloved prince.

sehun steals a glance towards him and finishes buttoning down his night shirt with a familiar yet so unfitting hint of shy innocence, and baekhyun feels his chest being clutched by heartache. sehun was just a boy, merely nineteen years old, and he was to lead his kingdom's army into a most macabre bloodfield.

baekhyun wondered if he was the only one aware of how tragic sehun's fate was.

"you're so loud," sehun comments, his soft voice pulling baekhyun out of the abyss of his mind, only now realising how the prince was already sitting next to him.

"i haven't said a word." baekhyun mumbles, blinking, and sehun smiles that warm sad smile of his that makes baekhyun want to weep.

"your thoughts are loud." the prince rephrases himself, a hand moving to affectionately fix baekhyun's hair, thumb brushing against his cheekbone afterwards. "it's easy to see.. you know? your worries shine right through you."

baekhyun's gaze drops and he leans into the touch, seeing no point in denying what was there for a blind man to see. "i don't want you to go," he mutters, and his hands find the fabric of sehun's shirt to clutch onto. "i don't want the war to happen."

sehun doesn't speak at first but baekhyun can tell he's battling with his own thoughts now, unsure of what to say for it's not like he has a choice; it's not like he was ever given a choice. he pulls baekhyun closer and his arms wrap gently yet protectively so around the shorter, embracing him closely. "it will be okay," reassurance is his best shot and he presses his lips to the top of baekhyun's head. "we will be okay."

baekhyun wishes he could be the fool everyone says he is, because if he were, he could believe sehun's words and sleep in peace one last night.

 

 

they say the first day is always the hardest and this proves to be no exception to the popular saying, clear by the heavy tension airing over the doctors, nurses and healers that stayed behind. there were no injured to treat yet, no stories to listen to. the army left early in the morning for the first battle to be fought, leaving behind those who did not hold weapons of any sort. sehun left as well, leading them to the battlefield, but not without pressing a promise of reunion to baekhyun's lips before putting on his helmet and climbing onto his horse.

now everyone who stayed behind at the tents was left pacing, waiting and anticipating for the first arrival, the first news in this dreadful silence of theirs, broken once in a while by occasional chit-chatting that always died out shortly after. minutes seemed to take hours and hours seemed to take days to pass by, ticking by slowly and painfully, each second adding to baekhyun's anxiety one drop at a time like sand pooling on the bottom half of an hourglass.

and so he was left with nothing to do but to pray, pray until his hands went numb and the words dried in his mouth before they even left.

he wasn't aware of how much time passed until the first signs of commotion were heard, sparkling everyone's attention, making the curious ones rush out of the tents to greet the arriving army. baekhyun went after, heart beating strongly in his chest, and the sight he saw wasn't pretty in the slightest.

there was a high number of injured already, nurses hurrying and rushing by to help them to the tents, to provide fast aiding as they had been instructed and taught to do. baekhyun's eyes scanned the crowd anxiously, nervously, skipping from spots of red and black and trying to find a glimpse of blond amongst them.

when he did, the sight had his heart dropping to his stomach.

"sehun," he breathes out, rushing past everyone else to his prince. he watched as sehun was just removing his helmet, and the lack of pain or discomfort in his features shocked him greatly. there was blood on sehun's armor, on his arms and helmet, but no visible wounds. that was when he realised it.

the blood sehun was covered in was not his own.

 

 

"baekhyun," sehun calls out, hands finding the shorter's to hold, fingers intertwining together. he had washed already, stripped of his armour and ready for a night of rest, but there is something stopping him from going ahead. "baekhyun, it was incredible."

baekhyun meets his gaze, brows slightly furrowed, anxiety still tickling at his skin the way it had been ever since sehun returned and now mixing with confusion as well. "what?"

"the battlefield," he replies what baekhyun had been fearing, the latter feeling sick to the stomach. "how easily i could defeat them.. how simple it was for me to kill." he says, voice a breathy whisper, and there's this slight excitement to it, this familiar tone of his that sehun used to have when telling baekhyun of his favourite things.

except this should not be a topic that falls under such category.

"it was almost effortless, truly.. i felt powerful." sehun continues, gaze on their held hands, thumbs brushing over the veins on the back of baekhyun's hands. "i'm confident we can win this war."

baekhyun does not reply. he stares past sehun instead, thoughts crashing heavily on him.

this is what sehun was: a naïve child who saw good in everything, even in things people overlooked. holder of strong innocence and this strange purity to him, everything sehun did was gentle, warm, soft like his palms and lips, kind like his heart and soul.

this is what sehun was trained for: to become a human weapon, a murderous machine who saw nothing but victory before his own eyes, who did everything to achieve his goal no matter the cost, no matter the weight it could possibly add to his consciousness. played with like a puppet under the hands of greedy adults, shoved from place to place in order to fulfil his training, his fate, this cruel destiny of his.

baekhyun thought his kisses and whispers at one in the morning had saved his beloved prince, preserving this innocence he adored about him, stopping him from becoming the avaricious monster everyone wanted him to be.

but in the end it was baekhyun who lost this war.

"baekhyun," sehun calls out again, pulls him right back to reality, concern hinted at his voice. his palm is warm as it finds rest against baekhyun's cheek, tilting his head so they would find each other's gaze. "it's alright." he reassures, and for the first time since baekhyun can remember, he wonders if the prince truly knows what is running through his mind at that very moment. "it's alright." a repetition for emphasis, head leaning in closer, closer until his lips pressed against the serving boy's.

but baekhyun does not kiss back and it adds to sehun's worry, leaning back just so he could meet baekhyun's gaze again, hand moving to affectionately run through the dark hair. "baekhyun-"

and baekhyun could only stare back, despair twinkling in his brown eyes, voice reduced to a cracking whisper, "where is my sehun?"

 

 

time goes by faster afterwards; it is the third week and sehun is leading the army skilfully, perfectly even, winning battle after battle, causing the enemy to retreat a little more each time, bringing them closer to victory step by step. he remains enchanted by his own power, his own speed and strength, taking pride in the way he fights and, grotesquely so, on the lives he takes with him.

baekhyun has been busying himself healing the wounded knights, running from tent to tent alongside kyungsoo, applying his knowledge from months spent reading yifan's books and murmuring healing enchantments he has permanently imprinted in his mind. it keeps him occupied while sehun is out there, leaving blood-stained footprints wherever he walks, destroying bit by bit the sehun that accidentally threw a fig at his face and that kissed him in the flowing river.

it was all going too smoothly, too according to plan. sehun was becoming who he was meant to be all along, their kingdom was slowly tasting the first hints of victory and everyone was high-spirited, confident and determined to end this war in record time.

and then it all happened so fast.

a sudden ambush to their hide-out, knights of the attacking kingdom bringing forth destruction and fear as they ran towards them with swords and spears held high. the doctors were not useless; most people left behind did know how to use a sword as well and they strived to protect their tents and the injured the best they possibly could until help would come their way. it did not take long for sehun and a handful of fellow knights to show up, stepping in the chaos and angrily defending their hide-out from an attack that failed to comply to the rules set before war.

baekhyun was amidst the confusion and terror, hurrying for safety, running for he had never managed to do anything else when it came to weapons and offence, the cowardly action weighting him down when he needed to be lightest.

he had been doing fairly well until there was a scream, followed by a knight running towards him, then a violent force shoving him out of the way, and baekhyun was left to watch with horror as sehun was impaled by an enemy's spear right before his eyes.

 

 

"sehun, sehun," baekhyun cries, fingers trembling almost violently as he tended to the prince. he had done everything he possibly could, tried all the treatments he had learnt and uttered all the healing enchantments he could remember. the wound had been too deep, still bleeding even after treatment, soaking through the bandages tightly wrapped around sehun's upper body.

he didn't understand; he couldn't possibly understand. for a prince to sacrifice himself in exchange of a mere serving boy, to take such hit for someone whose entire purpose after leaving on the quest alongside the prince had been to be the one giving his life for him were it ever necessary went beyond baekhyun's understanding.

he thought he had lost sehun to war, yet as the prince lied there, so weak and stripped of his glory, reassuring smile remaining on his lips, baekhyun could see his sehun again.

"baekhyun.." the prince whispers, voice tiny and hoarse, a shaky hand moving to wipe the shorter's tears as gently as he could. baekhyun's hands moved to hold sehun's in his own, holding it tight as if sehun could be saved if only he squeezed hard enough.

"the prophecy," baekhyun chokes out, shaking his head as he brings sehun's hand to his lips, kissing it once, twice, thrice. "the prophecy, sehun- you're supposed to win the war. you're supposed to become immortal." his eyes welled up with tears once more and he felt his throat closing on him, giant forming knot suffocating him. "you're not supposed to die."

and this was the part where sehun would reassure him like he always did, to tell him it would be alright and fine and okay in the end, that they would make it through, that he would live to see another day alongside baekhyun.

but he didn't, because even if sehun is product of a miracle itself, he cannot produce them on his own.

"it's getting cold.." sehun whispers instead, weak smile not faltering although his eyes fall closed, too tired to hold them open any longer. baekhyun takes it as his cue to wrap an arm around sehun, pulling him up as gently as he possibly could, holding him against his chest while his free hand continued on holding onto sehun's.

"i love you," the three little words fall from sehun's lips in an almost breathless way and baekhyun's eyes shut tightly, heart beating madly against his chest, tears rolling down his cheeks for what should have been a loving confession between the two sounded more like a goodbye than anything else.

"i love you too," baekhyun sobs out in return either way, face pressing against sehun's blond hair, keeping the prince closely against himself. he was shaking violently, and he felt sehun's hand in his own weakly squeeze it. "i love you so much."

he loved sehun when the prince defended him from the bullies when they were merely past toddler age, when sehun took him to see the lilies in the palace's gardens for the first time, when sehun read bedtime stories outloud for the two of them under the safety of thick covers while it rained outside.

he fell in love with sehun's grace, with sehun's smile and sehun's innocence, with the way the prince was so determined yet so gentle, so good at heart with his every action.

and he regrets not saying it any sooner than right this moment, not whispering it in sehun's ear every night before falling asleep or mutter it against his lips as they kissed again and again and again, lost in their own little world where there were no princes nor servants but merely two boys instead, stripped of statuses and roles, merely bathing in each other's affections.

he has loved sehun all along and he wasn't ready to let him go.

"sing for me," sehun's weak voice breaks through the sound of baekhyun's crying, and baekhyun held him closer as he felt the prince grow colder and colder by the second against his chest.

"what..?" baekhyun sniffles, confusion making him wonder if he had misheard. it had been too long; last time sehun requested him to do it they had been interrupted, and up until then the environment had been too heavy for something as light as singing. it wasn’t a fitting request, it wasn’t something baekhyun should do at the moment.

but it was also just like sehun to break through criteria and follow his heart’s wishes instead.

"please sing for me.." yet sehun does repeat what he heard and baekhyun is left wondering for a second whether or not he should, but the least he can do is obey sehun one last time and comply to his wish at last.

so baekhyun does; his voice is shaky and teary and it cracks around the corner but he sings the best he possibly could, hardly above a whisper, broken melody falling from his lips like sighs. his eyes remain closed as he sings, keeping sehun's body close to his own, memories of their times together flooding his mind and fuelling to the song.

only when his singing stops does he realise sehun's hand went limp in his own.

 

 

"we are doomed now," minseok mutters, head shaking to himself as pitch black silence surrounded the knights, each grieving the loss of their prince. they had returned from burying his body with a heavy heart, and baekhyun had only been satisfied once sehun’s grave had been paid proper honour, covered in a sea of white lilies. "absolutely doomed."

jongin stands next to baekhyun, a hand rubbing subtle, soothing circles on his back. they had never been too close, but baekhyun appreciated the act of kindness. it reminded him of sehun, and baekhyun wondered if jongin had learnt these little gentle actions from hanging out with the prince himself.

"the enemy is afraid of sehun's power," jongdae adds to minseok's words, leaning against the large table in the tent they were gathered at. "once they know he's gone, they won't hold back anymore."

"maybe they won't have to know," baekhyun mutters, surprising the surroundings knights for it's the first time since sehun's death that they hear him speak again.

"they saw him die." jongin replies by his side, and gently as he possibly could, yet it feels like a stab to baekhyun's chest either way.

"i saw him die," he corrects, perhaps bitterly so, and jongin averts his gaze. "they only know he has been wounded. they are most likely expecting him to die, but if he leads the army once more, the shock and fear will be even greater on their side."

some of the knights exchange looks and chanyeol's gaze is heavy on him. "what do you suggest?"

baekhyun's lips press together in a thin line, thoughtful, unsure, until he decides his choice had already been made. he had thought long enough about it. "i will dress his armour and lead the army in his place."

were it any other occasion and baekhyun was sure mocking laughter would have followed his words, but he is clearly serious and so are the knights. looks are exchanged once more and baekhyun feels jongin squeeze his shoulder. "baekhyun-"

"they do not know what sehun looks like." baekhyun continues. "the helmet will hide my hair like it hid his. as long as they see someone in the prince's armour, they will assume it's sehun himself."

"you do not know how to fight," chanyeol reminds.

"i know the basics. and if all goes right, i won't have to." baekhyun replies. "you are all far too needed to fight, but i'm not needed at all anymore. i am the one who has spent most time with the prince out of everyone in our whole army. i know sehun and i know what decisions he would take. i was with him during training and i've learnt all he knows, too." he says, licking over his dry lower lip, fingers curling into fists to hide their shakiness. "i know how to lead an army."

and he knew it sounded crazy, he knew it sounded like his plan would be a failure before they would even try it out, but desperate times call for desperate measures and this is the only way baekhyun can imagine being useful to his prince one last time, for one last chance.

"we should give it a try," jongin speaks up for him then, gaze moving from knight to knight, reassuring hand still on baekhyun's shoulder. "we have nothing to lose anymore. the shock they will receive upon seeing baekhyun is our last chance for victory."

there's still uncertainty in everyone's gazes but there's also despair and fear, and in the end, it seemed to be common agreement that there was, indeed, no reason to deny this plan. slowly heads started nodding, murmurs of agreement here and there, and as pressure grew on baekhyun's chest, confidence did just the same.

jongin turns towards him and he speaks in name of all present knights. "we are counting on you, baekhyun."

baekhyun swallows dryly and nods.

he shall honour sehun's name.

 

 

the last battle went by in a blur. baekhyun lead the army as thoughtfully as he possibly could, applying all the techniques he had learnt from overhearing sehun's lessons with yifan, pouring his heart into the purpose of bringing victory at last to men as broken by war as he is himself.

but he couldn't recall much anymore, not right now as he lies on one of the many nursery beds, gaze set above. he feels warmth glowing on him, the same sensation he had every night when he and sehun lied under the constellations, yet all he has above his head is the rough fabric of their tent. it is awfully quiet, apart from coughs or groans of pain from here and there, and baekhyun identifies the warmth slowly bleeding through his clothes. he knows he is dying.

he's not quite sure for how long he has lied in there, pain numbing his body and mind, but his eyes weakly open one last time as light approaching footsteps reach his ears and baekhyun is met with long, flowing blonde hair.

the sea goddess stands tall by his bed and she is as gorgeous as she has always been, looking serious like she always did, though there is something troubling her eyes. she sits next to him on the bed and brings her hand to baekhyun's cheek; he expected it to be icy cold, but it's warm like her son's hands always were.

"people are cheering sehun's name on the streets," she speaks, so softly it's hardly audible, and baekhyun can only eye her in return. "the war has been won. they think sehun died honourably in the last battle and he has now been deemed a hero. his name will be famous and immortal now," she says, and the way her thumb so gently rubs over baekhyun's cheekbone seems to be easing the pain more and more. "you have fulfilled my son's prophecy."

the words should fill him with pride but they do not. he is tired, exhausted, and eternal glory does not matter to him.

"please," he breathes out, voice raspy and hoarse from lack of use. "let me be with him."

the goddess eyes him carefully, expression unreadable. it's a moment until she speaks again. "my hatred for humans blinded me about you, baekhyun. i thought you would be sehun's fall, but you have saved him long before the war even started." she mutters, and baekhyun is sure there must be other meanings to her words, but he can't possibly understand at the moment. his thoughts are sehun, sehun, only sehun. "he is half your soul, and you are his." she says, and baekhyun has never heard words so true. her hand runs through his hair and their eyes meet again. "do you wish to be reunited?"

it takes all of baekhyun's remaining strength to nod, pleading with his eyes if he is unable to properly do so with his lips. "please,"

she eyes him one last time, serene, before her hand falls like a curtain over baekhyun's eyes.

"find him, baekhyun. he is waiting for you."

and baekhyun's surroundings turn black.

 

 

 

 

 

 

it's like a hammock of clouds; soft underneath his feet, inviting and hardly threatening. light floods all around him, falling in golden liquid form from as high as the eye could see, surrounding them in shades of white, yellow and pink. he isn't scared nor hurt nor broken anymore; his wounds are sealed and he feels light, weightless. and ahead of him, watching one of the many golden waterfalls, is a boy with hair the same colour as the sun itself.

he dares to take a step. he doesn't stumble, nor do his legs fail him. he's filled with overwhelming confidence, with embracing warmth and immersed in a pool of peace. slowly, he walks.

the boy turns slowly towards him when baekhyun is close enough, warm smile on his lips, adoration swimming in his gaze. his hand extends, gentle, inviting.

"let's go home."

baekhyun smiles and their fingers intertwine.


End file.
